Mid-Spring or Mid-June?

In northern New England, the beginning of June has felt more like the middle of spring. Temperatures have been colder than usual in many areas, especially for locations in Maine and New Hampshire. Unseasonable frost has led to crop damage in parts of Maine as a result of temperatures dropping below freezing some nights. At four major climate sites in New England, the high temperatures on June 4 were the coldest on record for those locations.

More than half of the major climate sites experienced cooler-than-normal temperatures during the first half of the month.

Frosts and cooler-than-normal temperatures have impacted gardeners and farmers in New England, especially in northern Maine.

Dry conditions have kicked off the month of June for many areas throughout the Northeast, with 12 major climate sites in the region recording less than an inch of precipitation during the first half of the month. Buffalo, NY only received 0.24 inches of precipitation by the middle of the month, ranking this as their fourth driest start to June on record.

Precipitation departures from normal ranged from 13% in Buffalo, NY to 244% in Baltimore, MD.

Although drier-than-normal conditions have existed in many areas throughout the region, nine major climate sites in the Northeast have been wetter than normal during the beginning of June. Baltimore, MD has received 244% of normal precipitation so far this month, ranking this time period as its 12th wettest start to June on record. Three other areas in the southern part of the region have ranked the beginning of June amongst their 20 wettest on record.

Much of New England and New York experienced dry conditions during the start of June, with areas near Maryland experiencing wetter-than-normal conditions.

Severe weather on June 13 spawned two EF-2 tornadoes in Pennsylvania. The tornado reported in Bradford County was on the ground for over five miles but no injuries were reported. Later that night, another tornado touched down in Wilkes-Barre Township with 130 mph winds, resulting in six injuries and structural damage to cars and buildings in the area.

Damage from the day after an EF-2 tornado tore through part of Wilkes-Barre Township, PA. Photo courtesy of the NWS Binghamton.